[sarex] 2012-10-01 ARISS Status

[Carol Jackson]

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report

October 1, 2012

 

 

1.            Upcoming School Contacts

 

Izmir SEV Primary School, located in Turkey, has been scheduled for an
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Friday,
October 5 at 08:32 UTC via telebridge station K6DUE in Greenbelt, Maryland.
The school participates in the Partner School Science Program, which is a
program under Global Friendship Through Space Education, a California-based
non-profit organization that promotes friendship among young people from
different countries and cultures through the study of space-related science
and technology. Students communicate about space-related projects via
e-mail, collaborate on research on NASA's distance-learning Web site, and
videoconference between partner schools and NASA. First Lego League Robotic
Teams and Destination Imagination Teams have been a part of school
activities annually since 2005. Invitations to attend this event have been
extended to several VIPs including the minister of transportation, the
president of the board of education, the director of education, the mayor of
Izmir and the governor of Izmir.

 

Sekolah Kebangsaan in Putrajaya, Malaysia will experience an Amateur Radio
on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Sunday, October 7 at
11:04 UTC.  The school was invited to participate by the National Space
Agency Satellite Ground Station, 9M2RPN in conjunction with the "Prime
Minister's National Space Challenge Trophy 2012," an annual event since 2007
when a Malaysia astronaut flew to the ISS.

 

2.            Successful Contact Held with Waxter Young Women's Academy

 

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact was held
between students at the Waxter Young Women's Academy in Laurel, Maryland and
Akihiko Hoshide, KE5DNI aboard the ISS on Monday, September 24. Telebridge
station LU8YY in Argentina handled the radio connection.  The girls were
able to have all 13 of their questions answered with enough time left to
thank Hoshide for participating. Phone lines throughout the center were made
available so that other students could listen in as well. The ARISS contact
was part of a comprehensive education plan used to interest students in
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM).

 

3.            Sunita Williams Speaks with Halifax Students 

 

On Wednesday, September 26, Sacred Heart School of Halifax in Nova Scotia,
Canada participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
(ARISS) contact with on-orbit astronaut Sunita Williams, KD5PLB. The contact
was scheduled for 16:07 UTC, and telebridge station LU8YY in Argentina
connected with Williams, but the international phone line, which was to
connect Argentina to Halifax, went down and could not be brought up until
after the ISS had passed overhead. Williams agreed to try the contact again
on the next pass. Ninety minutes later, the audience of 250 got what they
had been waiting for - a successful contact! The students got in 17
questions, and one student was wished a Happy Birthday by the ISS commander.
Thanks to all who helped the school complete its contact.